Photos courtesy of brand
The AW2015 Holly Fulton woman is sugary, rich and mischievous. Inspirations for this coollection range from the louche eccentricity of Baba Beaton to the off kilter goings on in the cult eighties TV melodrama Tales of the Unexpected.
A trio of party girls are immortalised by Fulton’s hand in a series of repeat-geometric nouveau style prints and on crystal set, hand-engraved plastic earrings, bracelets, brooches and hair slides in collaboration with She’s. Mean and stroppy, dreamy and spaced out, assertive head girl, each muse takes the collection on a trip from the pre-war decadence of London’s devilish nightclub The Cave of the Golden Calf all the way to the nineties hedonism of The Haçienda.
The collection explores duality: the tough and the girly, night and day, decadent and demure, covered and revealed. Three quarter length cashmere and printed wool/silk coats are finished with bejewelled collars and cuffs, shrugged over lingerie-cut slip-dresses and camisoles. Tableaux printed hand pleated skirts, party dresses adorned with delicate crystal spaghetti straps and fully crystalized multi-stone shifts evoke the mettle of Joan Collins in The Bitch and the lively allure of Naomi and Kate stepping-out in chainmail mini-dresses at the start of the millennium. A palette of nudes, teddy bear brown, dusty pink and parma violet borrowed from Andy Warhol’s sugary illustrations of cakes are contrasted with lipstick red, moss green and chocolate, calling to mind the trippy Art-Deco-in-the-seventies charm of Biba. An image of doe-eyed Ewa Aulin posing with minuscule feline in 1968 struck a particular chord with Fulton. The softness of Mongolian fur and fine lace is paired with milky latex and strict black leather. Accessed with the support of the IFM Paris WORTH project, Sophie Hallette lace is trapped between latex and bonded to wool sponsored by Woolmark and Holland & Sherry. Feline repeats and thorny roses pepper the collection. High neck ruffles and jeweled cat collars restrain. Sculpted organza blooms form, frosted organic separates, paired with strict skirts and straight cut trousers.
The season’s accessories are off-kilter, luxurious and swish. Mini pouches are sequined with flowers and Avery Dennison heat transfers have been used on leather clutches, circular like tea plates. Christian Louboutin’s classic Décolleté 554 heel has been produced using Fulton’s seasonal prints. Bare, soft-hued suede styles are ramped up with jeweled buttons.